Ballet Night
Willow
« December 2008 | Main | February 2009 »
January 23, 2009
January 04, 2009
New Year Eve 2008 at New Orleans
I so love the trip. A combination of friends, seafood, music and more seafood, plantation and Mississippi river. It makes me feel nostalgia.
Stayed at Sheraton New Orleans, with river view. Mississippi river looks so alike Hudson river, at least in terms of width, and especially so when looked from far away and through the concrete jungle.
Cafe Du Monde. They serve only one food, "Beignets" and good coffee.
The kind waitress agreed to give us a cap from Cafe Du Monde.
Street car in New Orleans.
Kai won Yang Mu a free cup of coffee by answering the question in front of the small coffee shop.
"BE ALWAYS AT WAR WITH YOUR VICES,
AT PEACE WITH YOUR NEIGHBORS,
AND LET EACH NEW YEAR FIND YOU A BETTER MAN"
I found that I am always at peace with my vices and at war with my neighbors.
I will try to be a better man in the New Year.
But I am still finding the definition of "BETTER" and "MAN".
CASAMENTO'S RESTAURANT, famous for fried seafoods. Long waiting lines.(This seems very common in New Orleans, good food requires good wait. Fortunately most of the waitings are still reasonable and we have our own way of having fun while waiting.) And we found the waitress bitchy or unfriendly at the best. I thought people from South are more polite and patient than those from New York City?
This is my man, the number one shucker in the house. He showed us the "Flying Oyster", it is said to increase the flavor of the oyster.
Catching a flying oyster!
Big soft shell crab sandwich.
Audubon Park. It is not until that returned to New York that I finally realized the land was originally developed to house a World's Fair, the World Cotton Centennial of 1884
Night at Bourbon Street
New Year count down with Mayor on stage.
Jazz Alley
Gumbo Shop. I like Gumbo soup and Jambalaya so much! They are simple and tasty.
Most of the buildings in French Quarter have a second floor. with the plant, it looks so leisure and comfortable.
Preservation Hall is such a humble place, down to the earth. It is almost hard to believe that it is the temple of Jazz in New Orleans. But I guess the whole unwilling to change makes it more respectful and sacred place.
Most of the people stand for more than 45 minutes for the play.
The performance was phenomenal !
The crawfish is another inexpensive way to make yourself happy. But if you are like me, who eat a lot, it could still cost you.
If the Jazz and seafood are as wonderful as I expected, the trip to the Laura Plantation was far beyond my expectation and becomes the highlight of the trip.
We are lucky enough to have Norman, who is the current owner of the plantation to be our tour guide. He is extremely knowledgeable and co-author of the book "Memories of the Old Plantation Home".
Largest sugar cane kettle.
The main building. Because the ground is based on silt. The building is built on 8 feet of pyramid-shaped foundation.
First female owner of the plantation. She is the smartest among the three children. But the plantation life means hard working and no fun. We were standing in the cellar, and it keep cool of average 47 degrees.
The meeting room.
Code Noir